It's always worth it when God shows up

I love when God shows up during Bible reading!  Especially when it's something you've read possibly thousands of times, heard it spoken of and preached about for years, and He just drops by to say "It's Me, I love you!"  Genesis 1:1, "In the beginning God created the Heaven and the Earth." In the beginning...  God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit was already there. It amazes me that though He created time He is not bound by time!  Though my simple mind doesn't comprehend it, He has always been there. When Heaven and Earth began He was already Omnipotent: with a power that speaks worlds into existence and mends the broken hearted. He was already Omniscient: knowing the end from the beginning and everything in between. And yes He was already Omnipresent: with everything that He is being so great that He personally fills the universe. That is my God...  That is my Saviour...  Oh Lord, how unworthy I am

Oh, The Love of God

Titus 2:11-15 KJV
[11] For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, [12] Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; [13] Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; [14] Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works. [15] These things speak, and exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no man despise thee.

I am very thankful that I have a Saviour that loves me! And the scope of His love astounds me... First He loved me so much that He made a plan so that I could have the opportunity to go to Heaven. Then He followed through with that plan! I have seen a lot of plans made that never took place, but not God's plan: He fulfilled it with precision!!! All that He has asked me to do is put my faith in Him. He did all the work and asked me to trust Him. His love reaches further still as He desires a relationship with me; so much that He is continually working in me so that our relationship can be made closer as I deny my flesh and desire Him. Yes, the Holy and Righteous God wants a relationship with me?!?!? WHAT???

This love is not offered to a select few, it is offered to whosoever will call upon the name of The Lord. Call on this friend that sticketh closer than a brother and see the hope that he is offering. There is no greater life than the life of a Christian... If this were the last thing you read, and you were to die and step into eternity: do you know without a doubt that you would be in Heaven? Have you experienced the love that God has extended to you?

The Most Attacked Life in the World

I am convinced that one of the most difficult lively hoods today, is the life of a Pastor. I have seen in my life some great Men of God that have stood in the gap and taken a stand for what is right, as well as taken a stand against that which is wrong. Being a Pastor is a public position. Everything that you do is under a microscope. Every word that you say is dissected and looked at under every possible light, and yet your words are not always heard by those who need them most. In the last few years, as I've paid more attention to Pastors that I've come in contact with, I've seen more and more attacks go their way. This does break my heart, but this also comes with the territory. As Pastors, God has put them in a local church to be the man that stands to proclaim every word of the Lord. 2 Timothy 4:2 says, "Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine." This was written to a young pastor... He is called upon the be ready always to preach and proclaim the Word of God. He's to do this when it popular and when it's not popular. He is to reprove: to be the one to correct when things are not done right. He is to rebuke: to express disapproval when things are done wrong. He is to exhort: to advise and to urge those in the faith to do what is good and holy in the eyes of God. These sound harsh on the surface, BUT he is to all these with longsuffering, that is great patience, and with doctrine, that is the Word of God. It is the responsibility of the Pastor to be the one who proclaims God's Word, and that is not a very popular thing to do anymore. Because the Pastor is called by God to do these things he is attacked harder by Satan than the majority of the people he pastors. If Satan can cause the Pastor to fail then he causes an entire congregation to stumble...

As of right now I am not a Pastor. God called me to preach His Word so as His Preacher I will strive to follow 2 Timothy 4:2, but I never want to forget my Pastor. I'm convinced that he spends hours in prayer for me and my family each week. He is fighting a spiritual battle for me by calling for God to help and protect me, and I know that your Pastor is doing the same for you!!! God has placed in me the desire to pastor a church, but even when that day comes may I never forget to pray for MY Pastor! God has given me a GREAT Pastor, and I need to show my thankfulness by praying for him and lifting him up before God daily! Let us be careful what we say about God's Man. Make sure the things that we say are uplifting and make sure that we are lifting him up to God in prayer! Have you prayed for your pastor today? I bet he's prayed for you...

The Short Comings of a Day

Ever had a day where you feel that nothing goes right? Really?!?!? Never?!?!?!?!?!?!? Yeah, right... me too! Every step you take something goes wrong. You wake up late, don't get to bathe (hooray for the military shower - extra deodorant), make it to work right on time but you still feel like you were late sense you were the last one to walk in the door, your mind is racing thinking about everything you couldn't do because you now feel so lazy for sleeping in... The day goes on and as you strive to do your job you find new ways to mess up! You finally make it home and you get started on the list that you thought up during the morning meeting and things just don't go the way you plan. You reach the point of pulling your hair out because of the frustration you feel, and then realize that tomorrow is another day. Its with the thought of tomorrow that I realized something... 1 Thessalonians 5:18, "In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you."

WOW... That "in every thing" kinda covers EVERY THING doesn't it. In the days that we feel it all falling apart, do we thank God for it? Do we stop and put our trust in God for what He has for us in a day where we realize our short comings? What pierced my heart the most was not that I failed in the everything department, but I completely missed the "will of God in Christ Jesus" concerning me. Because I wasn't thankful today I missed the will of God for me today! So what about you? We all have bad days, but that is just another proof that we are alive! So for tomorrow, the day we always look forward to when we have a bad day, lets not miss the will of God for our lives. Lets find a way to be thankful! There is always something to be thankful for. It could be something simple: the fact that we woke up; the fact that we have a job. But when I woke up my back was hurting; or I hate my job. We all face that from time to time, but NEVER forget that Jesus Christ died on the cross for YOU, and because of that YOU can life forever in Heaven! All because He shed His blood for your sin; He paid a debt that you could never pay! There is always something to be thankful for, we just choose not to look for it sometimes. Thank you Lord for loving me, even when I feel so unlovable!

So, What Do You Believe?

Psalms 37:4, "Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart."

So, do we really believe the Bible? Or is it just another book to us? Is the Bible what we pull out only in times of great need, or is it really God's Holy Word? There are so many wonderful promises in God's Word that I think we know about, but there are few that we really care about. God has promised us here that if we delight ourselves in Him that He will give us the desires of our hearts. THAT IS HUGE!!!!! BUT WE DON'T DO IT. If we did really delight ourselves in the Lord we regularly witness the handy work of an almighty God. Many of us have our parts memorized. We look right, we act right, we smile at the right times, we get emotional at the right times, but we are as dead as we can be on the inside. Are you moved to act for the Lord? Are you burdened to spend time with the Lord? Does His word lift you, or do you even read it? Do songs that glorify HIS name fill your heart and mind, or is that just for Sundays? Do you and your friends spend more time talking about last nights game then you do the things of God? Make yourself happy in the things of God. Make Him your #1 focus! Make being like Jesus Christ your #1 goal! Delight yourself also in the Lord! It is only then that He will bless you by giving you the desires of your heart! So... Do we believe this enough to act on it? Do I believe this enough to act on it? Do YOU believe this enough to act on it???

The Greatest Man I Have EVER Known!

My Grandpa passed away on January 9, 2012. We called him Pa. Pa was most definitely a family man and a man of Faith. His life was devoted to the care of his family and the work of his Lord. He never drew a paycheck... What was grown in his garden was what he ate. The crops he was able to sell was the money that he earned. He depended wholly on his Savior for everything in his life. And my Pa was an amazing Bible student! He was one of the wisest men I think I've ever had the pleasure of spending time with. The life of Pa was certainly a lasting impression on my life. Most notably was the impact Pa made on my life with the way he reverenced the things of God. It was this reverence that truly introduced me to the greatest man I've ever known! Jesus Christ, God in the flesh, God with us! Pa's life was one dedicated to Christ. As my family grieves with the loss of Pa we now look Christ as we have been taught. Matthew 11:28, "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." Jesus Christ, the giver of rest to those that are in need; to those that are weary; and those that are burdened down. John 15:13, "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends." Jesus Christ showed us the greatest love that anyone could ever imagine! He came to this world to die for our sins. He, God in the flesh, laid down His life for us! John 3:16, "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." Jesus Christ, 100% man yet still 100% God. I may not understand it fully how God wrapped himself in a robe of flesh, accepting the limitations that we have, yet without sin. Nevertheless... Jesus Christ, in His deity, in His glory, in His holiness; the greatest man I have ever known!

Testimony of a Sinner Saved by Grace

I grew up in a home that always put Christ first. We went to a church that preached the Bible and took a stand for what was right. I was raised in a family that knew what it was to do hard work, and that nothing came without a price. I was very fortunate to have the chance to hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ from birth, but this was something that I spent a long time running from. When I was about 5 or 6 I remember hearing about being saved so I just decided that I wanted to do it. I didn't know anything about what was going on, I just nodded to the person that was talking to me and did what they told me to do. There was no conviction over sin what so ever, just me doing what I thought other people would be happy with. As time went on I kept feeling, what I now know was the Holy Spirit, a tugging at my heart telling me I had never accepted Jesus Christ as my Saviour. I just passed it off saying that I was crazy, even though a change had never really taken place in my life and I was able to do everything I used to do, sin the same way I used to sin, before I said I got "saved".

When I was getting ready to go into the 8th grade my parents and myself moved to Winston Salem, away from all my family and friends in Avery County. This move was something that I hated and something that caused a great rebellion to rise up in me against my Mom and Dad. I fought them every way I could... and sad to say I damaged the trust they had in me and our relationship in a great way. It was my freshman year in high school at North Forsyth High that I honestly got tired of fighting with my parents. It was then I decided to change and I thought to myself "hey, what better way than to tell people I got saved?" I lied to my youth pastor, and to my parents again, and to my church; but they were none the wiser because I had changed. Its sad that lies that we even teach ourselves to believe... Thankfully God kept convicting me of the need to be saved, but sadly I kept fighting it and running from God. I went through all four years of high school telling people I was saved but living like the devil. That lie of a life has crippled the possibility of witnessing to many of the guys that I played football with, and telling them about a true life in Jesus.

During my first semester of college God really began to convict me of my sins and on August 25, 2004, I asked Jesus Christ to be my Saviour. It was at that very moment that I passed from death unto life and a true change took place in my heart and life. It was no special prayer that was said; it was knowing that I was a sinner that was on my way to Hell; it was seeing that Jesus Christ paid the debt that was owed for my sins and He wanted me to live forever with Him in Heaven; and it was me, a poor wicked sinner, calling on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and believing in my heart that God had raised Him from the dead. Almost two years later, on August 9, 2006, God called me to preach His Word.

I don't know why God loves me so much. I've done nothing to earn it... All I know is that He saved me, its not anything that I had done or could do that saved me, and He called me to preach His Word. There is a desire in my heart now to share Jesus Christ with this lost and dying world, and to proclaim Jesus Saves wherever He takes me!

Thank you Lord for your goodness to this undeserving sinner!!!!!

Are you saved? Have you accepted Jesus Christ as your Saviour? Has there ever been a time that you felt true conviction over your sins? What are you trusting in to keep you out of Hell and to take you to Heaven? Only the blood of Jesus Christ can take you to a Heavenly home, everything else leads to a fiery destination.